Adam Silver calls out media for not appreciating today’s NBA

NBA Commissioner Adam Silver is aware that the way media members covers the league is not helping it grow in popularity.

Adam Silver calls out media for not appreciating today’s NBA

NBA Commissioner Adam Silver wishes media talked about why fans love the game

All throughout this past regular season, the NBA struggled to register good viewership numbers. Fans were deserting the league after they felt teams were producing a boring product. Adam Silver tried to bring in some changes, but even those tweaks, especially to the All-Star game, backfired.

Thankfully, the fallout from that All-Star weekend debacle was cancelled out by the recently concluded trade deadline. Fans around the world were still in awe after the tremor-inducing trades took place before the deadline passed.

The league’s landscape had changed, and fans had to change their allegiances to teams and players. However, as the debate regarding those trades raged on, one aspect still had fans shaking their heads. That was when they listened to veteran media members who still criticized the game.

Their references to eras past made it seem as if the current iteration was not worth watching. They continued to follow that narrative even when teams were throwing the kitchen sink at each other, battling for playoff spots near the end of the season. That is what Commissioner Adam Silver does not appreciate.

I respect the job the media does. It’s not a suggestion that people should not ask tough questions or be critical, or talk about things they don’t like about the game. But I would say, sometimes I think they don’t spend enough time talking about why people love this game.

Adam Silver said

He was initially trying to be diplomatic, but then essentially slammed media members for not talking about why people love basketball. He has said in the past that those media members omit that part when it comes to the NBA. But they do it when it comes to other sports.

Adam Silver open to shortening 82-game season

The NBA’s Commissioner was speaking with Numbers On The Board, where the panel asked him if he was open to the idea of reducing the number of games from the current 82-game schedule. Adam Silver, who had previously floated the idea of reducing games to 40 minutes, said that ‘nothing is off the table’.

He, however, did say that there is no conclusive data that indicates that players struggle with injuries later in the season. Instead, he pointed out that many players suffer injuries in the early part of a season. That could be due to conditioning issues or plain rust.

If he is presented with data that the season needs to be shortened, the NBA executive committee will look into it. These questions came against the backdrop of increasing concerns with load management. Time and again, former players have questioned the morality of players who load manage.

Silver clarified that endurance is a major factor in differentiating NBA players from others. But if the pursuit of endurance results in player health concerns, they might be forced to reduce the number of games.

Players might not want shorter seasons if it impacts their bank accounts

More and more players and teams are finding ways to exploit load management loopholes. The NBA reprimanded some of the teams after they rested star players on back-to-back games or road trips. The same players, though, might not be interested in reducing the 82-game season.

The Athletic’s Sam Amick and Josh Robbins conducted an anonymous poll that led to some backlash from players, coaches, and media personnel alike. Much of that backlash was against the anonymous votes for overrated players.

However, one anonymous poll asked the 153 respondents if they preferred a shorter 60 or 62-game season. The caveat was that their paychecks would also reduce proportionately. To this, one anonymous player responded.

I still gotta play 60-something games and get paid less? Hell no.

Anonymous player’s response

This means none of the players are willing to take a hit on their bank accounts. They believe playing 60-odd games is still a lot. They are not willing to sacrifice the chance to earn generational wealth for less time on the court. Therefore, Adam Silver will have to factor this in whenever he is making a decision.

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